Is it a dog...or is it a sheep?

A weather-beaten stone sculpture – known as the Pancake Dog – has got members of Dewsbury and District League of Friendship talking.

The sculpture has stood atop the Howlands Centre in School Street since the late 1800s.

Local legend has it that on Shrove Tuesday, when the school bell rang, the dog was allowed down from its perch to enjoy a pancake.

Now workmen for Bradford-based HB Projects, who are carrying out a major refurbishment of the community centre, have offered to take down the sculpture and clean it – when it is hoped to confirm whether Pancake Dog is of the canine persuasion or is another beast entirely.

The "Pancake Dog" on the roof of the Howlands Building in Dewsbury

Tom Ellis, chairman of the Dewsbury and District League of Friendship, said: “It is really exciting as it is probably the first time it has been seen clearly since it was placed in position in the 1880s.

“We still can’t make out what sort of animal it is. But HB Projects have promised to clean it up as part of the £500,000 refurbishment of the building paid for by the Big Lottery.

“The dog will be placed back in position in time for the re-opening of the building in July this year. We will then have a superb building that the whole of the Dewsbury community will be able to use and will be proud of.”

Mr Ellis said the sculpture was part of the fabric of a vicarage before it was rehomed at the school off Daisy Hill. “It could be a Christian lamb or a Yorkshire sheep,” he admitted. “It has certainly created a talking point among members.”

Tom Ellis, Chairman of the Dewsbury and District League of Friendship (left) and Andy Matley site manager of the renovation of Howlands Community Hub on School St Dewsbury, with the 'Pancake Dog' which sits on the roof of the building which is being renovated.

The charity has used the Howlands Centre for the past 65 years and holds arts and crafts sessions for disabled people five days a week.

The refit includes stripping out the interior, sandblasting the window surrounds, fitting double glazing and installing new central heating and insulation. A false ceiling and screens which divided the interior into four rooms are also being removed.

During the 12-week project, the league, which has about 80 members, is using facilities at Staincliffe Park pavilion.

A blue plaque on the Howlands Centre refers to the Pancake Dog legend. It refers to the building on the school in 1843 by the National Society for the Education of the Poor as Dewsbury’s second ”national school.”